Telecom
NCC Moves to Replace Foreign Technologies, End Capital Flight
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has taken another step to save the country billions of dollars spent on foreign technologies with a proposal to tertiary institutions to develop indigenous technologies that would end capital flight.
Prof Umar Danbatta, EVC, NCC
The regulator of the telecommunications industry in Nigeria is supporting amongst other things, telecommunications-based innovations and research from tertiary institutions in the country that are practical, locally realisable and have clear potential of developing the telecommunications industry.
The Commission in a ‘Request for Proposal (RFP) Telecommunications- Based Research Innovation from Academics in Nigeria Tertiary Institutions – 2020’ published on its website invites proposals from academics in tertiary institutions that have feasible research ideas, capable of replacing or enhancing foreign technologies in the telecommunications in Nigeria.
Prof Umar Danbatta, executive vice chairman/CEO, envisages that the initiative will help build capacity in the tertiary institutions and promote Nigeria’s contribution to the pool of technologies in use in the communications industry.
According to the Commission, areas of research include: Innovative clean energy Technology; 5G deployment in Nigeria; IoT Low Power Wide Area Network (WAN) Technology; Advanced method of Quality of Service (QoS)/Quality of Experience Management and test mechanism; and Monitoring and localisation of drones.
The NCC said interested researchers are required to submit their proposals which must: Come from teaching Academics in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions; and
Have a one-page executive summary of the research proposal to include relevance of the research to the telecommunications industry, deliverables, novelty of concept, methodology, team experience, project timeline and detailed cost schedule.
The criteria for the evaluation of the research submissions include the following:
- The area must fall within the specified areas of research; Adherence of proposal to stated requirements above; Novelty of research proposal (comprehensive literature review to bring out clearly the novelty of the research).
Others are: Clear statement and explanation of the problem; Proposed solution to the problem; and Proposed approach and methodology. Each project including prototype development must be concluded within 2 years.
The NCC stated that the project cost should not exceed a maximum of N12 million naira only, adding that it reserves the right to review this maximum amount. It however, warned that any academic with a yet to be completed research project with the Commission should not apply.
Also, total cost (including all costs) of the project must be clearly stated and broken down in details, for which there can be no variation. Proof of concept (feasibility of idea with diagram, algorithm, etc; Clear relevance to the telecommunications industry; and Evidence of local realization up to prototype.
The NCC further stated that: Cost reasonableness (cost of actualizing the idea including hardware and software requirements but excluding purchase of vehicles, Furniture or Internet data, foreign trips and allowances); Schedule of project organization; Coherent presentation/packaging of concept must be stated.
In addition it stated that Integration of research with education (capacity building of students via the implementation of the project in the institution); Allowance for researchers should not exceed 20 per cent of cost of actually doing the research while Evidence of competence of team in executing the project (include past work and CVs of team members) should be included.
The NCC noted that submission of the proposal will undergo preliminary assessment. “The proposals that are adjudged promising and capable of developing the Telecommunications industry will be further evaluated by another level of assessors.
“Sponsors/authors of research submissions may be invited for defence of their proposals before a decision is taken on whether the Commission will fund their project(s) or not. Those with existing research grand are not qualified to apply for this.
“Interested researchers are invited to submit both soft and hard copies and CDs of their research proposals on or before 8 September 2020 to the address below. Please note that any proposal submitted after the deadline will be rejected automatically.”
Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) is planning to encourage geo-political regions that grants zero charges for ‘Right of Way’ approvals as well not implementing arbitrary charges on telecommunications base stations in their regions with zero tariff.
Engr. Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, ALTON disclosed this to Nigeria CommunincationsWeek against the backdrop of incessant closure of base stations in some states.
He said that operators believe that the way out of this arbitrary charges and high cost of RoW approvals is regional tariffs.
“Operators are advocating for a regional tariff which means that geographical regions of Nigeria where cost of doing business for telecommunications operators is extremely high will attract high tariff compared to regions where there is low operating cost.
“Our advocacy of regional tariff is not based on a particular state but on regions. As at today there are regions where we have zero cost of “Right of Way” and low cost of doing business. Tariffs should reflect on operating environment. This means that national rate plan should consider high and low cost of doing business.
“If this is implemented, in a long run we could witness some regions having zero tariff because operational cost in such regions are friendly to operators,” he said.
It would be recalled that Kogi State recently shut down some operators’ base stations on account of local levies which raises the call for discriminatory tariff among geographical locations.
Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has hit back at Meta Platforms Inc, warning the tech giant that its threat to exit Nigeria will not erase its legal responsibilities or liabilities under the Nigerian law.
Meta said earlier today, May 3, that it “may be forced to effectively shut down the Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in order to mitigate the risk of enforcement measures.”
Meta’s warning came after it lost a legal bid last week to overturn a ₦220 million fine imposed by the FCCPC for violations of data protection and consumer rights laws.
Reacting to Meta’s threat, FCCPC, in a statement on Saturday, May 3, described Meta’s statement as “a calculated” move aimed at “inducing negative public reaction and potentially pressuring the FCCPC to reconsider its decision.”
FCCPC said that Meta threatening to leave Nigeria does not absolve the company of liabilities for the outcome of a judicial process.
“These infringements included denying Nigerians the right to control their personal data, transferring and sharing Nigerian user data without authorisation, discriminating against Nigerian users compared to users in other jurisdictions and abusing their dominant market position by forcing unfair privacy policies,” FCCPC wrote on X.
“Interestingly, Meta had been fined for similar breaches in Texas ($1.5b) and only recently was asked to pay $1.3 Billion for violating E.U. Data Privacy Rules.
Elsewhere in India, South Korea, France and Australia, Meta had faced varying penalties for similar breaches. But Meta never resorted to the blackmail of threatening to exit those countries. They obeyed.”
Meta may shut down its Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in protest against the substantial fines imposed by multiple government agencies.
The tech giant has been ordered to pay nearly $300 million in fines in Africa’s most populous nation, following regulatory demands which Meta described as “unrealistic.”
In July 2024, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), imposed a $220 million fine on Meta for allegedly discriminatory and exploitative practices against Nigerian consumers.
The commission stated that Meta had failed to engage a Data Protection Compliance Organisation and had not submitted a Nigeria Data Protection Regulation audit report for two consecutive years.
Similarly, the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), demanded $37.5 million over unapproved advertising, while the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC), announced a $32.8 million fine for an alleged data privacy breach.
Meta challenged the decisions at the Federal High Court in Abuja but was unsuccessful, as the court upheld the fines in a ruling delivered last week.
The court directed the company to comply with payment by the end of June, but Meta has indicated it may not do so, according to the BBC.
“The applicant may be forced to effectively shut down the Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria in order to mitigate the risk of enforcement measures,” the company stated in court documents.
Responding to the NDPC’s assertion that Meta’s data processing could expose Nigerian users to health and financial risks, the company said the agency had failed to “properly interpret the laws guiding data privacy.”
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